Thursday, November 7, 2013

Giraffes in Art Throughout History

Giraffes
are portrayed in numerous ways in artwork throughout history. In the beginning,
giraffes were displayed in artwork through the artist’s admiration for the
animal. Currently, while admiration still holds true behind present day giraffe
artwork, there are also some that characterizes the species as foolish,
unrealistic, and colorful.

"If
Democritus by any means came back from the other world to this, he'd have a
good laugh. Whatever the eyes of the crowd were fixed upon—some hybrid monster,
perhaps, half camel, half leopard, or an albino elephant—his gaze would be
fixed much more attentively upon the crowd itself than on the spectacle. They'd
give him more material for laughter.” -Horace, Epistle II.1

"Therefore it is unnecessary for a prince to have all
the good qualities I have enumerated, but it is very necessary to appear to
have them. And I shall dare to say this also, that to have them and always to
observe them is injurious, and that to appear to have them is useful."- Niccolò
Machiavelli, The Prince (XVIII)

Modern Day artwork:

-all images were copied
from google image search “giraffe art”

Giraffes being depicted
in artwork as unintelligent and foolish:

Giraffes being depicted as colorful and unrealistic
through modern artwork